How do you take a perfect game and make it better? Such a question must have been on the minds of the Assassin's Creed designers. Assassin's Creed I was an award-winning game, and also one of my favorite games of all-time. Its beautiful replicas of Middle Eastern cities, fun gameplay, and intriguing storyline drew me in. Months after I finished it, I would think about it - and even bought Prince of Persia to have a similar gameplay experience (also fun times). When I was in Cairo, I actually started thinking about how Altair would scale some of their minarets!
Assassin's Creed II does the impossible - improve on perfection. The game wasn't changed as much as it was enhanced. The gameplay is very similar to the first game, where you play an assassin and much of the gameplay involves climbing, jumping and scaling buildings, much like Parkour. The fight scenes are just as spectacular. I loved that the first game never allowed you to die - just "desynchronize". For some reason, this aspect gave me the bravery I needed to try things out that in other games, I wouldn't - knowing I would "die". The game has the same mini-games, such as races, and collection games, in this case treasures instead of flags. As in the first game, you are limited to a small section of cities at first, and then it is expanded - but these cities appear to be much larger than the last game.
So what is new? Well, the setting for one - renaissance Italy. I have been to Florence and Venice, and this game makes a very good re-creation of those places. It was thrilling to ascend Il Duomo when I have been inside it in real life. The story is a bit more personal and compelling than the last - you're not just an assassin - you are a wronged member of the Italian gentry, driven by vengeance.
Also, the game added some other key changes - the ability to change armor, weapons, and your appearance. You can buy these things rather than waiting for new weapons to be given to you during gameplay. You get money from treasures and from looting bodies. You also get to have a villa that you can improve, a homebase.
What I like best, aside from jumping across rooftops and scaling towers, is just how beautiful and realistic the setting is, from the stunning graphics - particularly the vistas from "viewpoints" - to the language spoken. After a session of playing this game, I start planning my next trip to Italy! Get more detail about Assassin's Creed II.
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